The Pinnacle of Competitive Excellence
- Drew Wathey
- 4 days ago
- 6 min read
The 2025 USA Pickleball National Championships delivered on all fronts: massive participation—with players from 47 states and 20 countries—high-level competition, and a picturesque host city.
The USA Pickleball National Championships brings together all divisions—age groups, amateurs, and pros. It’s a celebration of the breadth of the sport. Qualifying is rigorous (via Golden Ticket tournaments) so players know they’ve earned their spot.
On the pro side, the prize purse is meaningful—over $225,000 across singles, doubles and mixed. Whether you’re playing your first major bracket or watching the top pros, it’s a place where the “How I got here” stories meet “What’s next” ambition.
This year’s championships took place at the Barnes Tennis Center in beautiful San Diego, California, Nov. 15–23. Unfortunately, rain delayed initial rounds of play, so some of the early action was canceled. But the spirit of pickleball—community, competition, fun—prevailed.
Once the clouds parted, the tournament began to take shape as the organizers condensed schedules and changed the format of numerous games to single elimination.
Overall, the 2025 Nationals delivered on nearly all fronts: massive participation, high-level competition, some very good matches, and a picturesque host city that added extra appeal.
“This year’s Nationals was more than a championship, it was a gathering and celebration of community, passion, and possibility,” said USA Pickleball Chief Marketing & Strategy Officer Jose Moreno. “We watched athletes of all backgrounds and generations connect through a shared love of the game. The energy on the courts, the enthusiasm from the stands, and the camaraderie shared between players told a unified story that pickleball is for all.
“At USA Pickleball, we’re committed to building on this momentum,” added Moreno, “expanding access, celebrating diversity, and ensuring that every player—whether they’re competing for a title or playing their first match—feels connected and inspired to keep growing with us.”
One up-and-coming player is Sofia Sewing. The 26-year-old from Miami, Florida, who played collegiate tennis for the Hurricanes before joining the pro ranks, began playing pickleball just one short year ago.
Back in 2017, Sewing reached the Junior Wimbledon Championships and decided to turn pro later that year. However, knee issues forced her to move on to pickleball in 2024, and the floodgates of the sport opened up for her at this year’s Nationals.
Sewing entered the tournament as the top seed and breezed through to the finals in Women’s Pro Singles where she met Katerina Stewart, who had defeated defending champion Bobbi Oshiro in the semifinals. Sewing had beaten Domenika Turkovic in straight games 11-3, 11-4 in the other semifinal.
After dropping the first game of the final 11-5, Sewing came back, taking the next two games 11-5, 11-5 to earn the crown.
“I had very high expectations for this tournament and it was an event that I had wanted to play for quite a while. I heard so many great things about Nationals and I’m so very excited for how it turned out,” said Sewing.
Turkovic earned the bronze medal, defeating Oshiro in three tough games, 11-5, 4-11, 11-6.
Sewing then teamed up with Casey Diamond for the Pro Mixed Doubles event.
In perhaps the match of the tournament, Sewing-Diamond met up with the top-seeded tandem of Megan Fudge and Jack Munro in the semifinals.
After dropping a tight first game 12-10, Fudge and Munro took game two, 11-9. In the climactic third game, through tense back-and-forth rallies that featured incredible net play, Sewing and Diamond came out on top 12-10 to make it into the finals.
There, they met the duo of Jillian Braverman and Aidan Schenk.
It took only two games—both by the score of 11-9—for Sewing to earn her second gold medal of the tournament, and for Diamond, his first playing with Sewing.
“Winning this gold medal with Sofia is really special for me. We’ve been training about six to seven hours a day leading up to this event, and luckily it all paid off for us,” said Diamond, a former tennis pro in Charleston, South Carolina, who began playing pickleball roughly two-and-a-half years ago.
After losing the 2024 Men’s Pro Singles final to Chris Haworth, Patrick Kawka knew he had the experience now to handle the big stage and capture the title that eluded him a year ago.
The Polish native entered this year’s USA Pickleball National Championships as the No. 2 seed and didn’t drop more than 4 points in a game leading up to the semifinals, where he faced Naveen Beasley.
After a tough first semifinal game, winning 11-9, Kawka moved into the finals by winning the second game 11-5. He would face the top-seeded Ronan Camron, who had a much tougher time getting to the marquee match.
In his semifinal against Brandon Lane, Camron bookended 11-3 wins, dropping the middle game 12-10.
After losing the first game in the finals 11-6, Kawka became more aggressive, moving well, and blanked Camron in game two 11-0. At championship point in the third and final game, Camron sailed a backhand wide, putting Kawka atop the medal stand this year.
“I kind of wait on Nationals all year. My body is not quite what it used to be at my age, so I save myself for certain tournaments and I love Nationals,” said the 36-year-old Kawka. “After last year’s experience in Mesa, I was looking forward to this year’s event for quite some time.”
One of the all-time great names in sports—Purple Jesus Manthou—was paired with Erik Lange for the Pro Men’s Doubles action. The duo went up against Munro and Richard Livornese, and after dropping the first game 11-8, stormed back to win game two in easy fashion, 11-4, setting up a critical third game for the gold.
A year ago, Munro took home the doubles title when teamed with Will Howells. The pair they defeated that day: Lange and Manthou. Game three this year went to Munro and Livornese, 11-6.
The energetic Munro first picked up a pickleball paddle at the age of 10 after an injury sidelined him from his first love—baseball. “This tournament is amazing. Nationals does a lot of things right. I love this event and the move to San Diego was great,” said Munro.
One of the more formidable pairs in women’s doubles is the team of Fudge and Braverman. The defending champions made easy work of their foes last year in Mesa, but this year in the finals they ran into legendary player and Hall of Famer Simone Jardim who was playing with Christine Maddox.
After getting out on top early and winning the first game 11-3, Fudge and Braverman dropped their very first of the event 11-7 in the second. But their poise and steady play prevailed in the third game 11-3 for the win.
“Barnes Tennis Center did an incredible job. This was a perfect day to finish on with a high note. The weather, fans, energy level... It was really special,” said Fudge.
Newport Beach native Braverman agreed: “I feel right at home here on the West Coast. This is the biggest event of the year for us, and I look forward to it all year long.”
On the Champions side of the draw—for players 50 years of age and older—in Pro Mixed Doubles, the team of Lisa Alipaz and Marcello Paiva Jardim defeated Karin Ptaszek-Kochis and Youssef Bouzidi 11-9, 4-11, 11-5. (You may recognize Marcello’s last name. He’s the brother of Simone, but despite the win, he’s still the second-best pickleball player in the family!)
Another Hall of Fame member, Jennifer Dawson, teamed up with Lee Whitwell to take home gold in Champions Women’s Pro Doubles, beating Alipaz and Sabrina Guillebeaux, 11-5, 2-11, 11-8.
Bouzidi was able to come back and capture a gold medal in Champions Pro Men’s Doubles, playing alongside Patrick Cote. They defeated Daryl Wyatt and David George in straight games, 11-8, 13-11.
Both the Champions pro women’s and men’s singles competitions were canceled due to the inclement weather, and unfortunately no medals were handed out.
“Nationals once again showcased the very best of our sport—not only in talent, but in spirit. This year marked the 17th edition of this championship, the longest-standing and only national championships in pickleball,” said Mike Nealy, USA Pickleball CEO.
“Every athlete on these courts earned their place, underscoring Nationals as the pinnacle of competitive excellence in our sport. Watching players from 47 states and 20 countries, ranging in age from 11 to 87, compete with both intensity and respect reinforces a core truth: pickleball brings people together in ways that transcend barriers.” •
Drew Wathey is a published author and screenwriter (“A Season With Hope”) and former director of communications for the PGA Tour’s Phoenix Open. Wathey is the owner of SportsLink, a home-based sports public relations and marketing company. He is also a national sports anchor for iHeart Radio. His family lives in Phoenix, Arizona.
